Permission to reprint the abstract has not been received from the publisher.

According to Census estimates, Hispanics accounted for half the population growth in the U.S. between 2000 and 2004. Despite this fast growth, few research studies have focused on the labor market opportunities of Hispanic women. The first chapter provides a comprehensive analysis of Hispanic-white women's wage differentials in order to establish what the wage gap is as well as identify its possible sources. Using the Census, results suggest there exists a large wage gap between Hispanic and white non-Hispanic women. Like previous studies, differences in education and potential experience explain a large portion of the gap; however, those studies do not consider state of residence. The use of state fixed effects in the current analysis imply that not controlling for geographical location masks wage disadvantages experienced by Hispanics relative to white non-Hispanics.

The second chapter furthers the first chapter's analysis by using the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth (NLSY) in order to reconcile the varying estimates of estimated wage gaps in the previous literature using the NLSY. Results suggest that differences in sample design as well as control variables used have a large impact on the size and sign of wage gap estimates. Estimates that take into account differences in test scores are typically positive in previous studies implying a Hispanic wage advantage. However, results presented show how accounting for state fixed effects produces negative estimates even with test score controls, further suggesting the importance of location in examining Hispanic wage outcomes.

The last chapter analyzes the effect of selection bias on estimated Hispanic-white women's wage gaps. Previous studies generally find the wage disadvantages experienced by Hispanic women are explained by relatively low levels of human capital. These results are based on observed wages of working women, however, and there are ethnic differences in who selects into labor force participation. Using the NLSY, results presented find that accounting for the wages of non-participant women widens the disparity in wage offerings between Hispanic and white non-Hispanic women than what is normally estimated using the wages observed by working women alone.